Samuel Rutherford was a Scottish Presbyterian
theologianTheology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
and author, and one of the Scottish Commissioners to the
Westminster AssemblyThe Westminster Assembly of Divines was appointed by the Long Parliament to restructure the Church of England. It also included representatives of religious leaders from Scotland...
.
Life
Born in the village of
Nisbet, RoxburghshireNisbet is a small village on the B6400, in Roxburghshire, along the River Teviot, in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland. It is located north of Jedburgh and south of Roxburgh....
, in the
Scottish BordersThe Scottish Borders is one of 32 local government council areas of Scotland. It is bordered by Dumfries and Galloway in the west, South Lanarkshire and West Lothian in the north west, City of Edinburgh, East Lothian, Midlothian to the north; and the non-metropolitan counties of Northumberland...
area of
ScotlandScotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, Rutherford was educated at
Jedburgh Grammar SchoolJedburgh Grammar School is a state secondary school in Jedburgh, Scotland, with around 440 pupils, 40 teaching staff, and 15 non-teaching staff.-Architecture:...
and Edinburgh University, where he became in 1623 Regent of Humanity (
ProfessorA professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
of
LatinLatin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
). In 1627 he was settled as minister of
AnwothAnwoth is a settlement near the Solway Firth in the Stewarty of Kirkcudbright, in South West Scotland, within a parish of the same name in the Vale of Fleet, Dumfries and Galloway. Anwoth lies a mile to the west of Gatehouse of Fleet....
in
GallowayGalloway is an area in southwestern Scotland. It usually refers to the former counties of Wigtownshire and Kirkcudbrightshire...
, from where he was banished to
AberdeenAberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
for
nonconformityNonconformity is the refusal to "conform" to, or follow, the governance and usages of the Church of England by the Protestant Christians of England and Wales.- Origins and use:...
. His patron in Galloway was
John Gordon, 1st Viscount of KenmureJohn Gordon, 1st Viscount of Kenmure was a Scottish nobleman, renowned Presbyterian, and founder of the town of New Galloway.-Biography:...
. On the re-establishment of Presbytery in 1638 he was made Professor of
DivinityDivinity and divine are broadly applied but loosely defined terms, used variously within different faiths and belief systems — and even by different individuals within a given faith — to refer to some transcendent or transcendental power or deity, or its attributes or manifestations in...
at
St. AndrewsThe University of St Andrews, informally referred to as "St Andrews", is the oldest university in Scotland and the third oldest in the English-speaking world after Oxford and Cambridge. The university is situated in the town of St Andrews, Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It was founded between...
. He was one of the Scottish Commissioners to the Westminster Assembly of Divines in London, and after his return to Scotland he became Rector of St. Mary's College at St. Andrews in 1651. At the
RestorationThe term Restoration in reference to the year 1660 refers to the restoration of Charles II to his realms across the British Empire at that time.-England:...
of Charles II he was deprived of all his offices.
Writings
Rutherford's political book
Lex, RexLex, Rex is a book by the Scottish Presbyterian minister Samuel Rutherford . The book was published in 1644, had the English subtitle of "The Law is King", and although intended to be a comprehensive defence of the Scottish Presbyterian ideal in politics, was published in response to Bishop John...
was written in response to John Maxwell's "Sacro-Sanctum Regus Majestas" and presented a theory of
limited governmentLimited government is a government which anything more than minimal governmental intervention in personal liberties and the economy is generally disallowed by law, usually in a written constitution. It is written in the United States Constitution in Article 1, Section 8...
and
constitutionalismConstitutionalism has a variety of meanings. Most generally, it is "a complex of ideas, attitudes, and patterns of behavior elaborating the principle that the authority of government derives from and is limited by a body of fundamental law"....
. After the
RestorationThe term Restoration in reference to the year 1660 refers to the restoration of Charles II to his realms across the British Empire at that time.-England:...
, the authorities burned
Lex, Rex and cited Rutherford for
high treasonHigh treason is criminal disloyalty to one's government. Participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplomats, or its secret services for a hostile and foreign power, or attempting to kill its head of state are perhaps...
, but his death intervened before the charge could be tried.
Rutherford was vehemently opposed to liberty of conscience and his
A Free Disputation against Pretended Liberty of Conscience raised the ire of John Milton, who named Rutherford in his sonnet on the forcers of conscience in the Long Parliament. Rutherford also was a strong supporter of the divine right of Presbyterianism (the idea that the Presbyterian form of church government is mandated in the Bible). Rutherford was involved in written controversies over church government with the New England Independents (or Congregationalists). His "A Peaceable Plea for Paul's Presbytery in Scotland" (1642) was followed by his
Due Right of Presbyteries (1644),
Divine Right of Church Government and Excommunication" (1648) and "A Survey of 'A Survey of that Sum of Church Discipline' penned by Thomas Hooker (1655), with not only Hooker, but John Cotton and Richard Mather also writing books against Rutherford's view of church government.
Rutherford was also known for his spiritual and devotional works, such as
Christ Dying and drawing Sinners to Himself, "The Trial and Triumph of Faith" and his posthumously published
Letters (1664). Concerning his
Letters,
Charles SpurgeonCharles Haddon Spurgeon was a large British Particular Baptist preacher who remains highly influential among Christians of different denominations, among whom he is still known as the "Prince of Preachers"...
wrote: "When we are dead and gone let the world know that Spurgeon held Rutherford’s Letters to be the nearest thing to inspiration which can be found in all the writings of mere men".
See also
- Covenanter
The Covenanters were a Scottish Presbyterian movement that played an important part in the history of Scotland, and to a lesser extent in that of England and Ireland, during the 17th century...
s
- Andrew Bonar
Andrew Alexander Bonar was a minister of the Free Church of Scotland and youngest brother of Horatius Bonar....
who edited Rutherford's Letters for publication in 1863
- Rutherford Institute
The Rutherford Institute is a non-profit group based in Charlottesville, Virginia dedicated to the defense of civil liberties, human rights, and religious liberty. It was founded in 1982 by John W. Whitehead...
, a conservative civil-liberties organization named for Rutherford and inspired by "Lex, Rex."
External links